


Laetitia's Long Talk

by vibe_check



Category: Lupin III
Genre: SPOILERS for the movie by the way, not quite found family but you know how i get sappy, talk of families
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:55:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,087
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26850250
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vibe_check/pseuds/vibe_check
Summary: Laetitia's had a pretty rough day, between finding out way more than she'd ever be comfortable knowing and nearly dying a few times. So, in a weak attempt at solace, she addresses the elephant in the room and asks her strange companions about the one thing she can't stop thinking about: Family.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23





	Laetitia's Long Talk

**Author's Note:**

> Guess what's almost heeere! So maybe I already watched a patchy fansub of this movie, but does that negate my excitement for the American release? Not in the slightest. So, to celebrate, I wrote this (kinda lengthy, sorry) thing for one of the best girls of the week, Laetitia. Hope you enjoy!

Laetitia was alright. Really, she was. Her tears had dried, her complexion no longer red from the emotional strain of everything she’d learned in the past 24 hours. At worst, her nose would sniffle involuntarily once in a while. But as a whole, she’d recovered. Maybe just being away from the spot where Lupin had told her helped.

She gave herself some credit on the fact that most people probably took it a lot worse upon finding their adoptive guardian had lied about his ties to her family and was a monster. But now what? She had vague, if any, memories of Bres-- er, her grandfather. She had even less of her parents. And now, she lacked even a surrogate family to turn to. Right now, all she had was the band before her, most of which were gathered around their tiny table, just talking while Fujiko kept her eyes on the never-ending stretch of water below, piloting… Whatever this aircraft was called. So what if Laetitia never learned her planes? She could read dead languages!

The group… God, what a group they were. By this point, she knew Lupin well-enough. You kind of become well-acquainted after holding a gun to someone’s back, not that she was proud of it. Fujiko was nice enough to her, and of course she’d respect someone who managed to save her life as nonchalantly. She actually tried to thank her, but Fujiko simply gave her a warm smile and told her not to mention it. That might have had something to do with Fujiko currently holding a gun at someone else, being a little preoccupied, but regardless, Laetitia couldn’t help admire her. Jigen and Goemon were strange characters. Both seemed to jump at a chance to scold or admonish Lupin, and yet, they came with him on this journey that seemingly had nothing in it for them. Neither were particularly cruel to her, maybe a little quiet, but she had no reason to fear them either. Last, of course, left the inspector she’d tricked only a day ago. She still felt a little bad about it, but she hadn’t even given a proper name! It was the security’s own fault for being so lax, and he didn’t seem to hold it against her. Even with a reason to reject helping them, he’d given in quickly and wholeheartedly. 

They were all good people, even if they weren’t… GREAT people. Lupin was obnoxious, Fujiko was very, very focused on a monetary gain that likely wouldn’t be there, Jigen was easy to provoke, Goemon barely contributed aside from cutting, at least from her perspective, and Zenigata was obsessed and blunt. But then she thought about how easily she’d been tricked, for her whole life pretty much, that her adoptive grandfather was a good man. Actions really spoke louder than words, sure, but it hurt that it took this for her to realize that. 

She stretched her arms out with a sigh, breaking out of her thoughts long enough to absorb the conversation going on. 

“You have to have something else stocked on here.” Jigen was halfway across the table, leaning on his elbows. 

“This isn’t a bunker!” Zenigata cried. “We packed snacks for emergency, we got some water, and that’s it! It’s mobile, it doesn’t need rations!”

“Snacks for emergency is just a lighter term for rations,” Lupin argued. “This is just a moving bunker.”

“He has you there,” Goemon agreed.

“No, no he doesn’t! A bunker is made specifically for long term, and this wasn’t made to withstand some catacylsmic event.” Laetitia wasn’t even sure why they were arguing, but looking at Lupin’s face, it seemed to be a form of entertainment for them. 

“It may not be a bunker, but those ramen cups WERE rations,” Fujiko replied from the front. 

“This is so simple that Fujiko and I agree,” Jigen said, putting his pointer finger on the table for emphasis. “That. Simple.”

Laetitia began to feel obtuse at the levity of the discussion compared to her thoughts on takeoff. Should she interject? Should she wait?

“Okay, fine, they’re rations! And rations aren’t meant for luxury, so you can’t complain that the cups are all we have on board.” Zenigata crossed his arms, hunching in on himself in defeat. 

Or she could just let the argument end itself pitifully. That was an option, she guessed.

They must have just remembered she was there, because Goemon made eye contact with her and cleared his throat. The other three in the cabin picked up on his line of sight and also drew their attention to her. There was an invisible shift in mood as one by one they seemed to remember what had just happened. 

“You’re holding up fine, right?” Lupin asked. She didn’t want to say anything and be rude, but she really didn’t like it when Lupin’s voice would soften that way. The only other times he’d done it was when he knew something horrible she didn’t, and was either about to tell her or just continue lying. 

“Yes, I’m fine.” She smiled, a sincere one, to let him know it was an honest statement.

“It would be wise to eat,” Goemon suggested. “It will not end your problems, but it would comfort you some.”

“That’s very nice of y--”

“Get her some water too,” Fujiko added.

“I’ll get the rations,” Jigen smiled. Zenigata’s scowl was not lost even though Jigen had already turned away from him.

“That’s very nice of you guys, but I really am alright.” She hesitated, thinking about how angry she was she’d been unintentionally lying for a sizeable chunk of her life. It wouldn’t hurt to be a little truthful now. “I’m just… Thinking.”

Lupin signalled for her to come closer to the table, closer to the group. Laetitia slowly obliged, crawling forward until she was in a forearm’s reach of the table. She fell back to her normal sitting position with a slight slump, halfway regretting her choice to share her concern, even if it was vague. 

“What are you thinking about?” he asked.

Zenigata reached slightly to hit Lupin’s shoulder with the back of his hand. “That’s a stupid question. Don’t make her tell you if she doesn’t feel comfortable.”

“No, it’s fine. I was thinking about um… Talking about it anyways.”

Lupin hit Zenigata similarly in response to that. “Now, as you were saying?”

Laetitia wasn’t sure how badly she needed to vent or ramble on. It was a lot of emotion she could likely deal with herself. She was an adult. She had gone through plenty of bouts of negative emotion. But if given the choice in those previous situations, what would she have given for a sympathetic ear, let alone five?

Jigen returned with the cup of cloudy, unappealing soup. She must have been worse for wear than she realized, because the steam warming her face almost brought her to another brink of emotion. She peeled off the rest of the top, twisting it in her fingers. At least Jigen wasn’t overbearing about it. Did he care? Hmm, that was another side to her predicament. Which was worse, having people care too much and almost suffocate you in the process, or not care at all, but leave you be? That gave way to a much more painful question; Was it worse to have no family, or terrible family?

She ate some ramen, burning her tongue, though it wasn’t like she cared. She swallowed, and she couldn’t quite place if it felt thick from tears or the bite of food. Laetitia looked around at the others, suddenly pretending they hadn’t been cautiously watching her. “We’ve talked enough about my family.” Keeping her head down, she stirred the cup. “What about you all? I don’t know anything about your families.”

When she dared look up again, she saw a wide array of expressions flashing on each of their faces. Even Fujiko’s quiet seemed weighted now.

“It’s not a common topic,” Lupin laughed, the only truly light-hearted thing in the room. Laetitia hesitated, and glanced at Zenigata before looking back to Lupin. “No, not just because he’s here. It’s… Hmm… It’s hard to say, we just don’t discuss it often. Or ever.”

“Aside from him,” Jigen supplied. Laetitia thought that made sense. Lupin, after all, was more than eager to tell her as soon as he figured out their grandfathers must have known each other. Lupin took pride in his family, and yet he made it out like they never discussed it. “And Goemon, but that’s different.”

“Goemon?”

Goemon had closed his eyes some time ago, and just now opened them at his name. “Lineage is different. Jigen is correct.”

“Lineage?” She felt silly just repeating their statements, but didn’t know what else to say through a mouthful of noodles. 

“She doesn’t know?”

“How would she, it’s not exactly introduction-level stuff.”

Jigen threw a thumb towards Goemon. “You’re into history. You know Goemon Ishikawa right?”

“Yes?”

“I am… one of his descendants.”

“NO… Really?” The surprise of the fact almost made Laetitia forget why the conversation had started. “You must have so many stories to tell no one else knows! You must have so many years of family history!”

Goemon’s mouth hung open, like he wasn’t sure what to say to that. Lupin and Jigen broke out into vicious laughter. “N… No, I… Um…” He turned pink, unusually embarrassed at the outside interest in something dear to his heart.

“He’s the thirteenth,” Jigen cooed. “He’s got ten on you,” he added, pointing to Lupin.

“What about you, Jigen?” 

He got quiet now, which made Lupin howl even more. “And so the shoe is on the other foot!”

“Oh, shut up.” Jigen shifted, but leaned back onto the table and conceded. “I dunno what they’re doing now, but my parents’re fine as far as I know. I had a sister--”

“Oh!” Laetitia gleefully interjected.

“She’s dead.”

“Oh,” she said, lower than before. 

Jigen smiled slightly. “It’s fine, it was a long time ago. I got to spend time with her when it mattered most.” 

Laetitia admittedly wanted to know more very badly. She understood the acceptance of past death, because… Well, people aren’t orphans for no reason. But learning just hours ago that her real grandpa had died, even if it was years ago, made it feel fresh. She wanted advice, but it would be too much for a stranger. And that’s what they were, even if they were friendly. It wasn’t her place to ask him to continue.

“That’s good at least.”

Jigen nodded, content to end his portion there even if she wasn’t.

“Does anyone else have siblings too?” Lupin shook his head casually, and Goemon followed similarly. 

“No, some cousins though.” 

“I do not believe that counts.”

Zenigata was making a point not to look at anyone, so naturally someone was going to bug him now. Unintentionally, both Laetitia and Lupin asked at once, “What about you?”

He leaned back to distance himself from the others. “ME? Well… YOU NEVER CARED BEFORE!” 

Lupin made a face. “It never came up. You really think we don’t care? Oh Pops, come on.”

“If you cared it would only be because you’d use it against me!”

“What about me? What would I gain?” Laetitia asked. Zenigata opened his mouth to respond, and immediately shut up. Stumped.

Fujiko jumped in. “Two.”

“Two?”

She nodded, a gesture that only Laetitia could see from there. “My mom passed away when I was young, but I had an older sister and younger brother. Last I heard, he’d just moved out.”

Last she’d heard? Laetitia frowned, staring at her legs. It seemed like a life like this meant dropping any and all ties. Not that that didn’t seem inevitable at this point anyways. 

“I… Guess I could talk a little,” Zenigata piped up. Laetitia leaned towards him, immediately making him second guess his decision. “It’s not that interesting! I just call my parents on holidays that I can’t visit, and keep in touch with my sister’s family. And, um… My… Kid…”

The craft went quiet. Laetitia wasn’t sure if this was just a forbidden topic, or if the others were as out of the loop as she was. Based on Lupin, of all people, and his subdued reaction, she assumed the former. 

“You… Have one?” she asked carefully. 

He nodded. “A daughter. She’s still little.” He shifted. Was he uncomfortable? Had she made it all uncomfortable? Still, he smiled a bit. “She’s real energetic, and her mom and I ended on amicable terms ‘n so it’s fine, I can visit. It’s my own f-- I mean, I guess I can’t really work in time to…” His smile faded, and Laetitia caught how his eyes started to trail across the table to Lupin, just stopping short of actually reaching his bright tie. 

Oh, this wasn’t at all her goal. She was hoping a conversation like this would have made things EASIER, instead all it did was make the atmosphere worse. She should have known it’d be a sore subject in a group like this, but why would she want to generalize? Why would she… Why… She lost her train of thought. Zenigata had a choice none of the others had, at least at this exact second. His primary enemy respected him enough to never dare hurt his family, but Lupin and his gang had dangerous foes, who would’ve leapt at the chance to hurt them where it counted. Siblings, parents… Children.

Zenigata could connect with his daughter. Instead, Lupin was in the way. Suddenly, something inside Laetitia flamed up. 

“So work in the time,” she blurted. The others were quiet. 

“I’m gonna go check the… Other, area,” Jigen said, standing up to distance himself. That was fine. He wasn’t her target. 

“It… It’s not that easy, Laetitia. I have to--”

“Then don’t! For five seconds, don’t do what you have to do! She should come first!”

“But--” Zenigata pitifully added, halfway gesturing at the setting they were in, more specifically, their company.

“I’m getting there. But you need to think about how she’ll feel if she loses you without even knowing you! You’re so obsessed over this, you can’t…” She gave up on him briefly, remembering that ‘this’ was in the room. “You!” She turned to Lupin.

He looked unphased. 

“Shouldn’t you be giving him time for something like that? You get to be so proud of your past, and he doesn’t get his present!”

Thinking she was off his case, Zenigata shouted back, “Yeah!” 

“Hush!” She threw a finger back at him, his eyes widening as he ducked away from it. “You’re still at fault! Pull your head out of your butt long enough to appreciate her! Lupin isn’t going anywhere!”

“Actually--”

“ZIP!”

“But--”

“No more!” Suddenly, the scolding turned heavy. Her chest felt weighted, and her head felt like it was being squeezed. “You have an option, Inspector! Make use of it. Don’t leave her, don’t put all that weight on one person, don’t…”

“Laetitia…” It was quiet, soft, and coming from the front cabin. She hadn’t realized she’d started crying, but evidently Fujiko, despite being turned away from her, had. She thought she’d gotten it all out earlier. Maybe not. 

Lupin and Zenigata stared at each other, an unspoken pity. When they turned to Goemon, they found him keeping to himself. It wasn’t an act of cruelty. There was just… Not a lot he could offer beyond sympathy. 

The reality was that no one on this craft had her problem. All of their choices were their own. Laetitia hadn’t asked for her parents to be killed. She hadn’t asked to be lied to and manipulated by literal nazis. No one would ask for that. To learn it all and realize she was truly alone was what stung the most. She should have never said a thing. 

Lupin came closer, lightly gesturing to her cup. “You haven’t finished it. The steam might clear up your nose.” As if on cue, Laetitia sniffled weakly. She took her cup, stirring it around just to busy herself. One bite. Two. 

“You’re right.” All Zenigata got in response was another sniffle, followed by a glance up to him. “I… I should. Try to do better I mean, like you said.”

“I’m sorry.”

“No, no, you WERE right. I… Uh…” He huffed, having enough of this for now. “Is there another ramen cup up here?”

“One left,” Jigen replied, seemingly out of the shadows. Had he been there long? Most likely.

“You know, you’re missing a point of this,” Lupin said, drawing her attention away from the others.

“What? You think--”

“No, I mean about your situation. Just because you have no blood relatives doesn’t make you alone.” 

Laetitia sighed. “But what else DO I have? I don’t have friends. I don’t even have coworkers.”

“What about that college?” 

“I’m not enrolled yet.”

Lupin’s smile was uncomfortably… comforting. The thing about Lupin’s face was that you got so used to it being twisted up in sneaky glee or annoyance that when it displayed true, sincere kindness, it was offputting. 

Not necessarily bad, though.

“You’ve got a lot of time to get a family of your own.” Lupin paused after he said it. “I don’t mean like, taking care of babies, but that IS also an option.”

She understood. It was a rickety bridge solution to a gaping valley of a problem, but it was better than nothing. She’d have to give herself more time to process everything, anyways, and their mission was far from over. Maybe when everything had settled she’d figure herself out, both her feelings and her future ahead. It was heavy stuff for a glorified road trip. 

After swallowing another gulp of noodles, she looked at Lupin pensively. “You think I can find one?”

“No, you don’t just find them, you have to make them. But I think you can do that.”

She nodded, finding herself very interested in the exposed bolts in the floor. 

“You’re certainly likeable enough,” Goemon said, just the hint of a smile on his face. She smiled back, feeling her cheeks break the stream of tears. 

“And smart,” Fujiko offered. 

“And stubborn,” Lupin said, ruffling her hair. “They’d be lucky if they could get rid of you once they found you!”

Her impromptu meal now finished, she sighed, shakier than she intended. “You think so?”

“I have a hunch.”

“A solid theory?”

“The solidest.” 

And she believed him.


End file.
